Physical Description:The tiger is the largest cat species in the world. The largest tiger sub-species are the Siberian tiger. The male weighs about 500 pounds and the female is 300 pounds. The average length of the male tiger is 10 feet and the female is 8 feet. The appearance of the tiger depends to a great extent on where the animal lives. Tigers that live in cold regions are paler in color and larger in size; their fur is long and thick. In warmer climates, tigers are smaller in size and more colorful; they have shorter, thinner fur. The fur on the tiger’s back is very thick and the stripes are pale. The color of the Siberian tiger is yellowish-brown, while the Indian tiger is reddish-brown. The stripes on a tiger are very dark. Like all cats, tigers have sharp claws and teeth. Habitat:Tigers can be found in a variety of habitats. They range from tropical forests, evergreen forests, ravines, woodlands, mangrove swamps, grasslands, savannas, and rocky country. Some other preferred habitats include dense thickets, long grass or tamarisk shrubs along river banks. Some tigers seem to take a special liking to old ruins for cover. Tigers rely on concealment for stalking and ambushing their prey; they look for areas with ample food, water and moderately dense cover. Tigers are adaptable animals; they can adapt too many different surroundings, as long as they have sufficient water, shade and food.

Behaviour:Tigers can move quickly and quietly. Springing with ease, tigers can cover 15 feet in one leap; they can jump long distances over obstacles and land. The tiger rarely climbs trees, but swims well.

Food Supply:Tigers usually stalk their prey alone and at night. The maximum kill range for a tiger is 80 feet. To make a kill, the tiger leaps on the animal, biting its neck. It then takes the slain animal to some hidden spot. If it is a large animal, the tiger feeds on it for many days. During this time, the tiger does not kill again. Tigers prey on deer, moose, rabbits, birds, fish, bear, elk, lynx, hares, pigs, cattle, goats, and some smaller animals. The main foods of tigers are buffaloes, antelopes, and rodents.

Enemies and Endangerment:The tiger has few enemies; besides humans, they are large buffaloes, elephants and bears. Its defense against other animals that may attack are its large claws and very powerful teeth. Tigers are excellent swimmers and climbers, which save them from floods and other disasters, as well as protect them from their enemies. The tiger is a very cautious animal; it doesn’t like to hunt elephants or larger animals than itself, unless it is very hungry, or if its cubs or it were attacked.

The main predator of the tiger is humankind. They have been trapped, poisoned and hunted heavily by humans not only to eliminate threats to livestock, but also for sport, trophies, skins, and sources of traditional medical products. Superstition has surrounded tigers for centuries; their body parts are used in Asian medicines. Neck-lets of tiger claws are thought to protect a child from “the evil eye”; tiger whiskers are considered either a dreadful poison (in Malaysia), a powerful aphrodisiac (in Indonesia), or an aid to childbirth (in India and Pakistan); the bones, fat, liver and penis of a tiger are prized as medicines.

Humans have also altered the natural habitats of tigers by their destruction and encroachment on the tigers’ feeding range; humans are destroying their habitats by cutting down trees, moving into their preferred locations, polluting the water and air, and hunting their prey.

]]>http://reem8h.global2.vic.edu.au/2014/06/16/tigers/feed/3Dian Fosseyhttp://reem8h.global2.vic.edu.au/2014/05/05/dian-fossey/
http://reem8h.global2.vic.edu.au/2014/05/05/dian-fossey/#commentsMon, 05 May 2014 10:53:48 +0000http://reem8h.global2.vic.edu.au/?p=3Dian Fossey was born on January 16th, 1932, in San Francisco, California and grew up with her mother and stepfather. She began to develop a connection for animals at a young age, throughout her youth. She was a keen horseback rider and an aspiring veterinarian. But, after enrolling in pre-veterinary studies at the University of California, she transferred to San Jose State College and changed her major to occupational therapy.After graduating Dian worked as a hospital intern for several months in California and moved to Louisville, Kentucky, where she began serving as director of the Kosair Crippled Children’s Hospital’s occupational therapy department in 1955.She soon became restless, longing to see other parts of the world and setting her sights on Africa.

Back in Kentucky, Dian Fossey caught up with Louis Leakey (the anthropologist who encouraged her) at a lecture in Louisville in 1966, and he invited her to take on a long-term study of the endangered gorillas in the mountain forests of Rwanda. Dian accepted the offer, and later lived among the mountain gorillas in the popular Republic of Congo until civil war was forced her to escape to Rwanda.Dian wrote a book in 1983 called ‘Gorillas in the Mist’, which includes scientific information about the mountain gorilla at Karisoke Research Center with her own personal story. It was turned into a 1988 film.

Dian Fossey became the world’s leading authority on the mountain gorillas. She spent two decades researching them and helps protecting them from the poachers. A poacher is a person who hunts down and kills animals or fish illegally.

After Dian finished writing her book ‘Gorillas in the Mist’. Dian’s favourite gorilla, Digit, was killed by poachers on New Year’s Day. Dian was upset and furious at the poachers. She held poachers as prisoners, tortured them, frightened them and threatened to kidnap their children, hoping they will see what gorillas were experiencing.
Considered the world’s leading authority on the physiology and behaviour of mountain gorillas, Dian fought hard to protect the gorillas from the poachers. She saw these animals as impressive, highly social creatures with individual personalities and strong family relationships. Her busy conservationist stands to save these animals from zoo poachers and government officials who wanted to convert gorillas not only via the media, but also by destroying poachers’ dogs and traps.

Tragically, on December 26th, 1985, Dian Fossey was found murdered, possibly by the hands of a poacher, at her camp in the Rwandan forest. The murderer killed her using a machete; it had split her face and skull open. The person who had murdered Dian was never found and nobody knows who killed her. She was buried in a plain, plywood coffin with her beloved gorillas.

]]>http://reem8h.global2.vic.edu.au/2014/05/05/dian-fossey/feed/2Hello world!http://reem8h.global2.vic.edu.au/2014/04/23/hello-world/
http://reem8h.global2.vic.edu.au/2014/04/23/hello-world/#commentsWed, 23 Apr 2014 23:24:13 +0000http://reem8h.global2.vic.edu.au/?p=1Welcome to global2.vic.edu.au. You have registered with Global2 and by doing so have agreed to the Terms of Service. Basically we want you to be safe and responsible for yourself and others on the web. Global2 is managed by the DEECD Victoria. This is your first post. To edit or delete this you need to learn how to drive your blog dashboard. To access this simply add the code /wp-admin/ to the end of your new Global2 web address. You can also go to http://global2.vic.edu.au/wp-login.php to login.
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